Key Events

Signing off

I’m signing off from the live blog this evening but my colleague Andrew Cain will be back in the morning with all the latest breaking news and traffic and travel updates. In the meantime you can send your stories in to lauren.wise@reachplc.com or tweet @LaurenWise.

18:54Lauren Wise

Ellesmere Port paedophile jailed

Paul Price, 49, of Jersey Avenue in Ellesmere Port was today convicted of possession of indecent images of children

Traffic - Ellesmere Port

There is congestion on the M53 at junction 5 on the exit slip road. Elsewhere there’s some traffic on Chester Road heading towards Overpool Road. With traffic also on Stanney Lane.

18:04Lauren Wise

Traffic - Warrington

There is queuing traffic on the A57 Midland Way and Froghall Lane around Crosfield Street. There are also the usual delays on Wilson Patten Street between Bank Quay station and Bridgefoot Island.

17:47Lauren Wise

One lane closed on M6 in Cheshire

One lane is closed on the M6 in Cheshire due to a broken down vehicle. One lane of the southbound carriageway between junctions 18 and 17 is closed while recovery work takes place. Normal traffic conditions are expected between 6pm and 6.15pm, according to Highways England.

17:36Lauren Wise

Traffic - Chester

The A483 Wrexham Road is busy but moving around King’s School. There is also very slow traffic on the same road southbound before the A55.

Vandals cause over £2,000 of damage to Warrington Central toilets

More than £2,000 worth of damage has been caused at Warrington Central toilets. British Transport Police (BTP) are appealing for information after the station’s sinks, mirrors and toilets were ‘severely damaged’ by an unknown person. Officers would like to speak with anyone who was at Warrington Central at around 8pm on Friday, October 26. The damage will cost £2,129 to repair police have reported. If you saw anything suspicious you can call BTP on 0800 40 50 40 quoting reference 608 of 26/10/2018.

14:43Lauren Wise

Lesley Manville filming in Handbridge

Actress Lesley Manville was seen filming a new BBC drama in Handbridge today (Image: Handbridge Life)

Warrington arrests for failing to appear in court

Two arrests have been made by Warrington Police following failures to appear in court.

14:19Lauren Wise

Two stranded following collision in Chester

Two people were left stranded after a car ended up in a drainage ditch on Marsh Lane in Chester. Cheshire Fire and Rescue Service responded to reports of a collision, which had resulted in one car being found in the drainage ditch. The two people who were stranded on top of the car were rescued by firefighters just after 11pm last night. There weren’t believed to be any injuries.

13:50Lauren Wise

Appeal following collision in Warrington

Police are appealing for information following a collision that took place in Orford, Warrington.

A collision occurred shortly after 2pm on Wednesday, November 21 at the junction of Marsh House Lane on O’Leary Street.

In a statement Cheshire police said:

Enquiries in relation to the collision are ongoing and as part of the investigation officers are keen to hear from anyone who witnessed the incident or anyone with any dashcam footage of the incident.

Santa dash road closures

Chester Santa Dash 2017 (Image: Andy Scargill)

The eighth Chester Santa Dash will take place this Sunday (December 2), organised by the Countess of Chester Hospital, who are raising funds for the Countess Charity, and the Hospice of the Good Shepherd.

Parked cars causing problems for firefighters

Firefighters have said they had issues with parked cars causing an obstruction while they tried to respond to incidents this weekend

12:21Andrew Cain

Widnes pub arson attack

A Widnes pub was the target of an arson attack this weekend, prompting police to appeal for witnesses.

At around 11pm last night (Sunday, November 25) a small container full of petrol was placed against a fire door at The Blundells Arms on Hale Road from outside the pub, before being set alight.

The pub’s staff were able to extinguish the flames with a fire extinguisher before the fire could spread beyond the door, and detectives are urging anyone who witnessed the incident or saw anything suspicious in the area to come forward.

They are also keen to hear from anyone who believes they may know who started the fire or may have CCTV or dashcam footage that may aid the investigation.

Anyone with information that may help detectives should call Cheshire Police on 101, quoting IML 250856, give the details by going to this link or contact Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.

“Arson is an extremely serious offence – people can die as a result of fires being started deliberately. Thankfully, in this instance the pub’s staff were able to extinguish the fire before it had chance to spread and put lives at risk.

“The incident could have been a lot worse than it was and we are determined to establish exactly what happened and make whoever started the fire face the consequences of their actions.

“Enquiries are ongoing and I urge anyone who saw what happened or witnessed anything suspicious in the area to come forward. The same goes for anyone who believes they may have CCTV or dashcam footage that could be relevant to our ongoing investigation.”